Busted Bracket
A ruined tournament prediction
Example
Ugh, my bracket is completely ruined. I had Clemson going to the Final Four
Same here. That upset totally killed me. Busted bracket on day one!
When your bracket is busted
Related Slang
| Bracket | Diagram of tournament games |
| Bracket buster | A team that upsets a highly ranked team |
| March Madness | NCAA Basketball Tournament |
| Cinderella | Underdog sports team |
| Bracketology | Predicting who will win a tournament |
| Final Four | Last four competitors |
| Elite Eight | Last eight teams of March Madness |
| Sweet Sixteen | Last 16 teams in a tournament |
| Cutting down the nets | Won a basketball tournament |
| Hoops | Basketball |
| ship | Championship |
| chip | Championship |
How well do you know your Fantasy Football slang?
A busted bracket is a March Madness tournament prediction bracket that has been ruined due to unexpected game outcomes. Fans and analysts often use the term during the NCAA Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments, which take place in March and April.
During March Madness, fans create brackets before the tournament begins, predicting the winners of each game all the way to the championship. Because of the tournament's single-elimination format and frequent upsets, many brackets become "busted" early on when heavily favored teams lose unexpectedly to a bracket buster. A bracket is considered officially busted when a person's chosen champion or most of their key picks are eliminated.
The phrase "busted bracket" has been widely used since online bracket challenges became popular in the early 2000s, particularly through platforms like ESPN, CBS Sports, and Yahoo Sports. Sports commentators, analysts, and casual fans frequently use the term to describe the frustration and excitement of the tournament's unpredictability.